A Richmond education equity advocate has a strong lead in her bid to join the Contra Costa Community College board of trustees.
Raquel Fanny Donoso, the equity in education program lead for the Skyline Foundation, is running against Cameron Sasai, who was Pinole’s youngest ever mayor. As of midnight she had 62% of the votes compared to Sasai’s 38%.
The seat is being vacated by John Marquez, who for 14 years represented San Pablo, Richmond and parts of Pinole, Hercules and El Sobrante.
The campaign conversation focused largely on expanding access and opportunities for students.
Sasai has outpaced Donoso in campaign fundraising by almost $9,000. Donoso was recently criticized for failing to disclose 24-hour campaign contribution reports on time.
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The race comes at a difficult time for community colleges statewide. Last year, the 4CD district laid off a number of staff, cut programs and warned that more difficult decisions will have to be made. In June, voters rejected Measure G, a $920 million bond that would have helped pay for facility upgrades and repairs. Last year, staff also protested and threatened to strike after administrators received significant raises while the union was at a stalemate in contract negotiations.
At the end of this year, district Chancellor Mojdeh Mehdizadeh will leave her post after four years at the helm and 30 years in the district. While there is an interim chancellor lined up, the new board of trustees will hire a permanent successor.
There are also elections in Ward 3, where incumbent Rebecca Barrett is defending her seat against contender Allyse Tanovitz, and Ward 4, where incumbent Andy Li is unopposed.
